Tag: Mail Services

Dutch government to liberalise postal market from Jan 1, 2009

Posted by | Jun 11, 2008 | |

Dutch Economic Affairs State Secretary Frank Heemskerk promised the Dutch coalition government parties on Tuesday that he will work towards liberalising the Dutch postal market from January 1, 2009, Dutch media reported.

In May, the Dutch government decided against opening up the postal market to competition on July 1, 2008, stressing there are too many uncertainties to allow for full liberalisation.

But Heemskerk was confronted with a parliamentary motion backed by the coalition parties Christian Democrat CDA, Labour PvdA and the Christian Union on Tuesday in which January 1, 2009, was suggested as a new targeted date for liberalisation, Dutch media reported.

Heemskerk said he will maximise efforts to meet the targeted date, but added that liberalisation will still be subject to two conditions, namely a level playing field in Europe and good workplace conditions for postal deliverers, the reports added.

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UK Post Office's GBP 150m subsidy 'in jeopardy'

Posted by | Jun 11, 2008 | |

The government’s financial support for post offices may be jeopardised if the network fails to win a tender to run the card account through which millions are paid benefits, MPs were warned yesterday.

Brussels has approved a government subsidy of GBP 150m a year to enable Royal Mail to run a network of 11,500 post offices by keeping loss-making branches open. But Post Office Ltd’s managing director, Alan Cook, said winning the card account was crucial in meeting state aid rules.

The government has put the card account out to tender from 2011 and Cook said: “The grounds of approval (from Brussels) are on the back of having the card account.”

The loss of other government work and a decline in the number of people using the card account had posed problems for the network, Cook told the all-party business and enterprise committee. If it lost the tender, the reduction in the level of services it would be providing would make it hard for the government to secure renewal of the social network payment, he said.

Post Office Ltd is closing 2,500 branches as part of its plans to curb heavy losses made by the network. Government funding will enable it to retain 11,500.

Cook told the committee the company would oppose any plans to shrink the network further but added that Post Office Ltd had to work within the limits of the funding provided by the government.

He revealed 100 local authorities had expressed interest in an initiative being pioneered by Essex County Council to take on post offices being closed under the network change programme.

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Spain is eurozone bargain for motoring holidays in Europe

Posted by | Jun 11, 2008 | |

Spain emerges as the best value destination for UK holidaymakers in Europe in a new report by Post Office® Travel Services – despite the fact that pump prices in Switzerland have made it cheapest for unleaded petrol for the second year running.¹

In its’ Motoring on the Continent report, the Post Office® reveals that Switzerland is now the only major motoring holiday destination where unleaded fuel costs less than GBP 1 per litre.

However, the report places Spain as best value across Europe for both diesel fuel and motoring in a hire car. At GBP 1 per litre, it is also cheapest in the eurozone for unleaded petrol. Prices are around 30 per cent lower than in either Belgium or the Netherlands, which are popular motoring holiday choices for UK tourists.

The cost of unleaded petrol rose substantially in all 12 countries surveyed over the past 12 months. Increases ranged from 20 per cent in Italy and the UK to 32 per cent in France. But, although these figures make the much-debated rise in UK petrol prices look comparatively modest, the falling value of sterling masks the true position in Europe.

Post Office® head of travel Helen Warburton said: “Sterling has fallen in value by 14 per cent against the euro in the past year – and by even more in the other motoring holiday destinations. When we extracted this percentage from the price rises, we found that the UK had suffered the highest underlying price hike – 20 per cent at the pumps.

The report paints a very different picture for UK holidaymakers travelling to Europe in a diesel car. Spain is the cheapest destination by a wide margin. At 94p for a litre of diesel it is seven per cent cheaper than its nearest rival Austria (GBP 1.01) but 26 per cent lower than the UK, where diesel prices are some of Europe’s most expensive.

The differential between unleaded petrol and diesel was most marked in the UK and Sweden, with diesel costing 13p and 16p per litre more respectively. However the Post Office® found that diesel costs significantly less than unleaded fuel in four countries – the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Spain.

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Retail shippers offering Postal Service products pay of (U.S)

Posted by | Jun 11, 2008 | |

Hundreds of retail shipping service owners accepting letters and packages for their customers are finding that offering U.S. Postal Service products and services makes good business sense and pays off big. Since its inception two years ago, more than 2,000 retail shipping service operators have surpassed USD 40 million in sales by participating in the Postal Service’s Approved Shipper program.

“The Approved Shipper Program enables the Postal Service to become more competitive in the retail package market while providing our customers with alternate access to postal products and services,” said U.S. Postal Service Retail Vice President Kathy Ainsworth. “Since our April 2006 program launch, more than 2,000 shipping retailers have realized the value of the program through nearly USD 42.5 million in sales. Retailers have the option of adding a surcharge while continuing to sell competitor products and services.”

According to Gary Laing, owner of The Shipping Room, in Oneonta, NY, his walk-in business increased 50 percent since signing up two years ago, and Postal Service sales exceeded USD 500,000 last year.

“The ‘Ship Package Here’ signs bearing the U.S. Postal Service Eagle logo gives me an edge as it tells my customers I offer products and services my competitors don’t,” Laing explained. “My revenue numbers make it clear that Postal Service offerings are in high demand.”

Other benefits include the program’s no-fee license agreement, free signs and other Postal Service materials.

To offer postal products and services, retail shippers must:
*currently use a postage meter or PC Postage account;
*ensure physical security of the mail;
*properly display Postal Service signs;
*comply with aviation security and hazmat requirements;
*follow the Postal Service product guide for approved shippers;
*accept Click-N-Ship® and other prepaid packages;
*obtain approval of the Postal Service’s local district manager;

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Dutch minister sees no post liberalisation until fair competition in Germany and UK

Posted by | Jun 11, 2008 | |

Dutch Economic Affairs State Secretary Frank Heemskerk said Wednesday he won’t take the decision to liberalise the Dutch postal market until fair competition exists in the German and UK markets, and postal workers are given a satisfactory employment contract.

The statement came after Deutsche Post World Net AG. filed a complaint with the European Commission to protest against the renewed delay of the opening of the mail market in the Netherlands.

The Dutch government on Tuesday decided not to end the mail monopoly as planned on July 1 2008 but to extend it indefinitely.

Both the Dutch government and national carrier TNT NV are unhappy about the German government’s introduction of a sector-wide minimum wage of up to 9.80 euros, saying it prevents fair competition within the German market.

TNT says that, unlike its rivals, Deutsche Post enjoys an unfair advantage through a VAT exemption on 40 pct of its operations in Germany.

A Berlin court ruled in March that a German law imposing a minimum wage at all companies in the letter-carrier industry is illegal.

The German government appealed the decision, with a higher court expected to rule in September, a TNT spokesman said.

Heemskerk said he will update parliament on the situation by October 1

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